While the 1st Amendment gives protection to speech, that protection does not extend to ‘true threats’. This case will examine when musings posted on a Facebook wall are protected, and when they go to far. It will have ramifications in Florida, which has harsh punishments for Written Threats, which include social media posts under Florida law.

CNN, as part of their Ferguson coverage, did a video piece on whether it is legal to record police officers. Yes, yes it is…

In the words of Jeffrey Mittman, the legal expert they spoke to, “you have an absolute right to make a document, a recording, of interactions with a government official.” He goes on to say it is improper for an officer to suggest otherwise. It was an issue with previous Ferguson protests where officers repeatedly told people to stop recording. People cannot physically interfere with an officer’s investigation, but merely making a recording does not do that. That’s a Constitutional right under the First Amendment.

Maria Montanez-Colon made news in February when she called 911, looking for a cop to give her some extra duty. When the cop refused, she called 911 and asked them to send her another one! She went to jail for that incident for misuse of the 911 system. Well, she’s at it again, but this time she wasn’t so friendly with the cops, finally becoming verbally abusive. She has been booked back into the Charlotte County Jail for the same offense. Officers indicate alcohol was a factor both times, and apparently she has had trouble dealing with her husbands’ death. Hopefully, she can get some help.

Warren Hamilton, who used to work at the State Attorney’s office in Fort Myers, entered a guilty plea to child pornography charges yesterday in Federal court. It did not go well. Hamilton apparently refused to admit to the allegations. According to reports, he finally entered a plea, but never admitted to knowingly downloading porn. He told the court that some of the images ended up on his computer, and he was trying to investigate, and that in doing so he “ended up downloading some images and files.”

It may come across to the court that he isn’t sincere, or isn’t taking responsibility for his actions… and that’s not a good thing. According to NBC2, he’s facing from 5 to 30 years for the charges he pled to. He is out on bond awaiting sentencing when he comes back before the court. I doubt that his claims about accidentally downloading some child pornography will impress the judge, especially considering that he worked in the IT department for the State Attorney’s office for a long time.

Cape Coral has approved the purchase of body cams for Cape Coral police officers. It’s a $300,000 purchase, but it will improve law enforcement and help protect officers. That’s a good move for the city and the people of Cape Coral. They hope to have the cams up and running by next summer.